Device for joining piping materials

ABSTRACT

This invention relates to a device for joining piping materials such as a piping material and a pipe coupling. 
     The piping materials are joined together by inserting one end of a piping material into a pipe coupling having a tapered and expanded diameter portion, and by causing the joint of these piping materials where they are overlapped with each other to be plastically deformed with a pair of processing dies which are movable in a direction parallel to the axis of the piping materials. 
     The half-die members can be kept in parallel to each other when they are moved closer to each other, thereby to provide uniform and rigid junction therebetween.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This invention relates to a device for joining piping materialscomprising a pair of processing dies which are movable in a directionparallel to the axis of the piping materials, by which the two pipingmaterials, such as a piping material and a pipe coupling, are joinedtogether by inserting one end of a piping material into a pipe couplinghaving a tapered and expanded diameter portion, and by causing the jointof these piping materials where they are overlapped with each other tobe plastically deformed with the above processing dies.

BACKGROUND ART

In the prior art, joining of piping materials is usually achieved bymeans of press rolls rotatively driven to caulk the joint of the pipingmaterials where they are overlapped with each other. However, thejoining of piping materials by use of such rotatively driven press rollsunfavorably requires a complicated structure, leading to an expensiveand large-sized device to make the handling of the piping materials inthe site of piping operation quite troublesome.

Thus, the present applicant previously proposed a device for joiningpiping materials without using press rolls in the Japanese ProvisionalPatent Publication (KOKAI) No. 109536/1982, which involves YOSEZUME (aplural number of dies movable in the radial direction) as the caulkingmeans which can approach the piping materials in the orthogonaldirection to the axis of the piping materials, but this device alsosuffers a problem of complicated cam mechanism for interlocking theYOSEZUME.

Furthermore, the present applicant proposed a device for joining pipingmaterials in the Japanese Provisional Patent Publication (KOKAI) No.142729/1982, in which a pair of dies are allowed to approach relative toeach other in a direction parallel to the axis of the piping materialsby use of cams which are movable in the orthogonal direction to the axisof the piping materials to achieve joining of the piping materials.Nevertheless, there remains a problem that the dies fail to keep theirparallel face-to-face relationship because of the structure in which thedies are only pushed at their back portions by the cams to receivegreater resistance from the piping materials at their portions facing tothe piping materials to break the parallel relationship therebetween,whereby said portions are slightly opened or lifted up from the surfaceof the piping material as compared with the back portions thereof, sothat the joining of a piping material and a pipe coupling cannot beachieved properly.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

This invention has been accomplished for the purpose of overcoming suchproblems inherent in the prior art and providing a device for joiningpiping materials which can achieve joining of piping materials, such asa piping material and a pipe coupling, properly, wherein dies disposedin the device can keep their parallel posture using a simple structure.

The device for joining piping materials according to this inventioncomprises a first processing die 24 in which a pair of half-die members28 each having inclined cam faces 28a formed thereon are combinedthrough connecting means, the above half-die members being mutuallyapproachable in the direction parallel to the axis of the pipingmaterials to be joined by use of a means for moving them closer orfarther relative to each other; a second processing die 26 having asimilar constitution to that of the first processing die 24, composed ofa pair of half-die members 28, to be disposed symmetrically relative tothe axis of the first processing die 24 and the piping materials; afirst and a second box-shaped cam housing 2 and 12 for receiving theabove two processing dies 24 and 26, respectively, and is disposed tooppose each other so as to move said pair of die members closer to eachother, wherein the above first and second box-shaped cam housings 2 and12 having cam faces 10a and 12a, respectively, which push the inclinedcam faces 28a formed on the above pair of half-die members 28, so as tomove the above pair of half-die members 28 closer to each other; andguide plates 36 being disposed in at least one of the above twobox-shaped cam housings to keep the above pair of half-die members 28 toperform a parallel movement to be closer or farther relative to eachother.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a device for joining piping materialsaccording to this invention in partially cutaway side view;

FIG. 2 shows a plan view of the present joining device in cross-section,illustrating a state before joining of the piping materials;

FIG. 3 also shows a plan view of the present joining device incross-section, illustrating a state which the piping materials arejoined; and

FIG. 4 shows a partially cutaway perspective view of the present joiningdevice, illustrating the relationships between the first box-shaped camhousing and the processing die.

2: First box-shaped cam housing

10: Cam body

10a: Inclined cam face

12: Second box-shaped cam housing

12a: Inclined cam housing

24: First processing die

26: Second processing die

28: Half-die member

28a: Inclined cam face

36: Guide plate

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Next, the device for joining piping materials of this invention will bedescribed in more detail by way of the embodiment shown in the drawings.

In the drawings, a first box-shaped cam housing 2 has two side wallplates 4 each having a semicircular notch (opening) 6 for insertingpiping materials to be supported therethrough formed in the middle ofthe front ends thereof. In the first box-shaped cam housing 2, there isdisposed a cam body 10, having inclined cam faces 10a formed on theinternal surfaces thereof, to be pushed forward by a hydraulic cylinder8 provided at its rear end, the cam faces 10a each opening outward inthe forward direction to the front end with an angle of around 45degree, as shown in FIG. 4.

The numeral 12 shows a second box-shaped cam housing, which has,similarly to the above first box-shaped cam housing, two side wallplates 14 each having a semicircular notch 16 for inserting the pipingmaterials to be supported therethrough formed in the middle of the frontends thereof. The second box-shaped cam housing 12 has inclined camfaces 12a formed inside thereof, corresponding to the cam faces 10a ofthe cam body 10 mentioned above.

The second box-shaped cam housing 12 is pivoted to the first box-shapedcam housing 2 by means of a hinge pin 18, such that they may be openedor closed, and the two box-shaped cam housings 2 and 12 are designed tobe clamped in a closed posture by allowing a clutch plate 20 disposed tothe bottom of the second box-shaped cam housing 12 to be interlocked bya clutch hook 22 pivoted to the outer bottom face of the firstbox-shaped cam housing 2.

The numerals 24 and 26 show a pair of processing dies (first andsecond), respectively, to be received in the above first and secondbox-shaped cam housings 2 and 12, and each having a pair of half-diemembers 28.

Each of the half-die members 28 has an inclined cam face 28a defined atits outer back side, with which the first box-shaped cam housing 2 isfitted, corresponding to the cam face 10a of the cam body 10, asupporting surface 28b formed to have a semicircular cross-section forsupporting the piping materials to be joined at its forward end, and atapered internal peripheral surface 28c contiguous to the supportingsurface 28b. Each of the die-members 28 further has guide surfaces 28dformed on the upper and lower ends in such a manner that the guidesurfaces 28d in pair may form a V-shape to open rearwards when thehalf-die members 28 are combined. The half-die members 28 have springretention holes 30 on the opposing surfaces in each of which there isinterposed a compression spring 32 which can fully be pressed backtherein upon application of pressure, so that they can be moved closeror farther relative to each other with the aid of guide pins 34.

Accordingly, the first and second processing dies 24 and 26 are fittedin the interior portion of the first and second box-shaped cam housings2 and 12, respectively, and combined to form a complete set ofprocessing dies.

Tapered guide plates 36 are disposed to the upper interior surface 2aand the bottom interior surface 2b of the first box-shaped cam housing2. These guide plates 36 guide in combination with the guide surfaces28d formed on the upper and lower end surfaces of each processing die,the half-die members 28 to move closer (or farther) keeping theirparallel relationship along the axis of the piping materials.

Namely, upon actuation of the hydraulic cylinder 8, the first processingdie 24 is advanced toward the second processing die 26 being pushed bythe cam body 10, and also the inclined cam faces 28a of the half-diemembers 28 are pushed diagonally inward by the cam body 10.

Thus, the half-die members 28 approach relative to each other resistingagainst the force of the compression springs 32, wherein thisapproaching motion of the half-die members 28 is guided by bringing thetip ends 36a of the guide plates 36 into contact with the guide surfaces28d, to approach along the axis of the piping materials keeping theirparallel relationship consistently.

Ball plungers 38 are disposed on the fore portions on the bottom 2b ofthe first box-shaped cam housing 2 and the bottom 12b of the secondbox-shaped cam housing 12, respectively. These ball plungers 38 aredesigned to facilitate fitting of the processing dies 24 and 26 throughone-touch operation to the box-shaped cam housings 2 and 12, so thatthey may be separated from each other as the two box-shaped cam housings2 and 12 are separated from each other, without slipping off therefrom.

The half-die members 28 of the first processing die 24 have pins 40protruding from the front side end thereof, and by fitting these pins 40into recesses 42 formed on the front side end of the second processingdie 26, the two processing dies 24 and 26 can be engaged to be movableintegrally along the direction parallel to the axis of the pipingmaterials.

Incidentally, the numeral 44 shows a semicylindrical holder of thepiping materials formed to protrude from each half-die member 28, andthe numeral 46 shows a return spring for resetting the cam body 10 whenthe hydraulic cylinder 8 is of a single-acting type.

Work

When a pipe coupling 48 and a piping material 50 are joined by means ofthe joining device having such constitution, the two box-shaped camhousings 2 and 12 are first opened to separate the two processing dies24 and 26 from each other.

Next, the piping material 50 and the pipe coupling 48 are set on thesupporting surfaces 28b having a semicircular cross-section, forming inthe half-die members 28 of the processing die 24, and the taperedjoining portions of the pipe coupling 48 are allowed to be supported bythe tapered internal peripheral surfaces 28c of the half-die members 28.

Thereafter, the first box-shaped cam housings 2 and the secondbox-shaped cam housing 12 are clamped together, whereby the twoprocessing dies 24 and 26 are fitted together to hold the joiningportion of the pipe coupling 48 on the tapered internal peripheralsurfaces 28c.

Next, the hydraulic cylinder 8 is actuated to push the cam body 10fitted in the first box-shaped cam housing 2 in the orthogonal directionto the axis of the piping materials, so that the processing dies 24 maybe moved toward the second box shaped cam housing 12 with the aid of theinclined cam surface 28a formed on the outer back side of each half-diemember 28, and the processing die 26 is moved likewise. Simultaneously,the half-die members 28 in each processing die 24 or 26 are pushedinwardly by virtue of the inclined cam faces 10a of the cam body 10 and12a of the second box-shaped cam housing 12, resisting against the forceof the compression springs 32 to approach relative to each other in thedirection parallel to the axis of the piping materials.

Finally, as shown in FIG. 3, the compression springs 32 are completelypressed back in the retention holes 30 defined in the opposing surfacesof the half-die members 28. Thus, the tapered internal peripheralsurfaces 28c of each half-die member 28 cause the joint where the pipecoupling 48 and the piping material 50 are overlapped with each other tobe deformed plastically to provide a rigid junction therebetween.

Moreover, in the device according to this invention, there are disposed,for the first box-shaped cam housing 2, guide plates 36 each having atapered end for guiding the motion of the half-die members 28 incombination with the guide surfaces 28d symmetrically disposed on theupper and lower ends of the half-die members 28 of the first processingdie 24.

Accordingly, the two half-die members 28 approach relative to each otherkeeping their parallel relationship as guided by the guide plates 36,when the processing die 24 is pushed by the cam body 10. With thismovement, the end faces of the half-die members 28 of the secondprocessing die 26 are also pushed simultaneously to introduce the backfaces of the half-die member 28 into the second box-shaped cam housing12 to move them in the same manner as in the case of the firstprocessing die 24 keeping their parallel relationship, at which endfaces of the second processing die 26 being brought contact with thefirst processing die 24 through the pins 40. Consequently, the separatedhalf-die members 28 achieve approaching motion integrally toward thejoint of the piping materials keeping secured parallel relationshiptherebetween along the direction parallel to the axis of the pipingmaterials, so that the joint of the piping material 50 and the pipecoupling 48 can be plastically deformed uniformly to provide rigidjunction therebetween.

After completion of the joining operation, the pressing of the cam body10 by the hydraulic cylinder 8 is released to cause the return spring 46to reset the cam body 10. Then the clamping of the first and secondbox-shaped cam housings 2 and 12 are released to open them, and the twoprocessing dies 24 and 26 are disengaged to remove the joined pipecoupling 48 and the piping material 50.

POSSIBILITY OF INDUSTRIAL EXPLOITATION

As apparent from the above description, according to this invention, thedevice for joining piping materials can be produced at low costs, sinceit has a simple structure and includes neither rotary system such as inthe conventional press rolls nor complicated cam mechanism. Moreover, byvirtue of the guide plates provided for the device, the half-die membersfor achieving plastic deformation of the joint of the piping materialscan be kept in parallel to each other when they are moved closer to eachother, thereby to provide uniform and rigid junction therebetween.Accordingly, the device of this invention, having overcome the aboveproblems inherent in the prior art divices for joining piping materials,should be highly evaluated in practical uses.

We claim:
 1. A device for joining piping materials, comprising:a firstprocessing die (24) in which a pair of half-die member (28) each havingan inclined cam face (28a) formed on an outer side of its back portionare combined through connecting means, said half-die members (28) beingmutually approachable in a direction parallel to the axis of the pipingmaterials to be joined by use of a means for moving them closer orfarther relative to each other; a second processing die (26) having asimilar structure to said first processing die (24) composed of a pairof half-die members (28) designed to be disposed symmetrically relativeto the axis of said first processing die (24) and the piping materials;a first and second box-shaped cam housings (2, 12) for receiving saidtwo processing dies (24, 26), respectively, disposed to oppose eachother, such that they can be opened or closed; wherein said first andsecond box-shaped cam housings (2, 12) each having cam faces (10a, 12a)which push the respective inclined cam faces (28a) formed on said pairof half-die members (28) so as to move said pair of half-die members(28) closer to each other in said direction parallel to the axis of thepiping materials to be joined; and guide plate (36) being disposed in atleast one of said box-shaped cam housings (2, 12) to maintain movementof said half-die members (28) closer or farther relative to each otherin said direction parallel to the axis of the piping materials to bejoined, with opposing faces of the half-die members (28) being keptparallel to each other.
 2. A device for joining piping materialsaccording to claim 1, wherein said first box-shaped cam housing (2) hasa cam body (10) to be interposed between said first box-shaped camhousing (2) and the half-die members (28), and having formed thereoninclined cam faces (10a) corresponding to the inclined cam faces (28a)formed on said pair of half-die members (28).
 3. A device for joiningpiping materials according to claim 2, wherein said cam body (10) has ameans for driving said first processing die (24).
 4. A device forjoining piping materials according to claim 1, wherein said first andsecond box-shaped cam housings (2, 12) have a means for clamping themtogether in a closed posture.